s hills which presented great difficulties to the horses when
taking his Grace's guests to and fro to enjoy their sport. But having
become a votary of the motorcar, these stiff hills have been surmounted
with ease by the four or five vehicles which the Duke has acquired for
sporting purposes. Helmsdale is the nearest railway station to Langwell,
and the road over the Ord of Caithness includes several hills with rough
and loose surfaces, and gradients ranging from 1 in 2 to 1 in 16, so
that the journey is not without its stress both for horses and
motorcars. John o' Groat's is forty-five miles distant, but this, as
well as other places of interest in the neighbourhood, is within
visiting range by the cars, though such long distances were not
attempted with the equine species.

To capture the Master of the Horse as an automobilist was a great
achievement for enthusiasts in the advocacy of the new mode of
travelling. The Duke of Portland has been such a devotee to the horse,
as were his ancestors centuries before him, that it was not to be
expected all at once, that he would, give his countenance to any new
invention likely to supplant the noble animal in its position as the
servant and friend of man. Having been a cyclist, when that hobby seized
the fancy of the fashionable world, it was not a long step to
automobilism, and having proved the superiority of the motor vehicle,
the Duke gave orders for some of the best types of cars to be supplied
to him. One of the most luxurious is a Limousine de Deitrich, and his
interest in the new art of locomotion is such that he has had a perfect
track prepared at Clipstone, called "The flying kilometre."

In 1907 the Duke became a member of the Royal Automobile Club and
submitted all his drivers for examination for the certificate. The test
took place at Welbeck, when there were shown several technical drawings
executed by the candidates, who all passed with merit and received their
certificates.

The Duchess on one occasion made some observations in public on motors,
and expressed a doubt as to whether any of her friends would forsake the
horse in favour of mechanical locomotion. That time, however, came
about, and now the Duchess is claimed as a patroness of the car, which
if prosy, compared with the delights of horsemanship, is, nevertheless,
useful for accomplishing distances which horses are not expected to
cover.

In a speech in the House of Lords, the Duke said he consider